First Position

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First Position, a documentary about the Youth American Grand Prix, a
prestigious ballet competition, covers similar territory to Fred Wiseman’s
La Danse (which takes us behind the scenes of the Paris Opera ballet) and
Beadi Finzi’s Only When I Dance (which follows aspiring dancers from the
favelas of Rio de Janeiro). While it’s less stylistically bold than the
former and less powerful as a story than the latter, this is immensely
enjoyable. The director Bess Kargman chose her subjects well: 11-year-old
Aran is a prodigy with a talent that could take him to the top; Gaya (also
11) has an